How to Use an AI Project to Write Your Newsletter

A step-by-step guide from Taught by Humans

This works with Claude Projects or ChatGPT Projects. We use Claude - but the approach is the same either way.

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Step 1: Get Your Tone Of Voice Sorted First

Before you set anything up, you need the AI to write like you - not like a generic AI assistant.

Start a new chat (not a project yet) and paste in examples of your writing. Past newsletters, blog posts, emails - anything that sounds like you. Then ask:

Summarise my tone of voice and writing style into a prompt I can give to another AI to write in this style.

Read what it gives you. Tweak it until it sounds right. This becomes your tone of voice prompt - you'll use it in your project instructions.

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Step 2: Set Up Your Project

In Claude: go to Projects and create a new one.

In ChatGPT: go to Projects and create a new workspace.

Give it a clear name - something like Weekly newsletter.

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Step 3: Write Your Instructions

This is the most important step. Your instructions tell the AI what to do every time you start a new chat in the project.

Include:

• Your tone of voice prompt from Step 1
• The structure of your newsletter (sections, order, what each one covers)
• Any formatting rules (British English, no emojis, sentence case headings, etc.)
• What to avoid
• Any sections you write yourself - mark these clearly as [I WRITE THIS] so the AI leaves them alone
• The line: Never rewrite. Only make suggestions.

That last one matters. It keeps you in control of the final copy.

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Step 4: Add Your Files

Upload examples of past newsletters into the project. This gives the AI context for your format, your regular sections, and what you've already covered - so it doesn't repeat stories or drift off-brand.

The more relevant examples you add, the better it performs.

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Step 5: Your Weekly Process

Once the project is set up, the weekly process is straightforward:

• Collect news links throughout the week (we use a Slack channel - team members drop links in as they come across them)
• On newsletter day, start a new chat in the project
• Ask for five title and subtitle options first - pick what you like, iterate
• Paste in your links and ask for the full draft
• Edit, add your own sections where marked, and send

The first version won't be perfect. Tweak your instructions as you go - it gets better quickly.

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A Few Things Worth Knowing

• Claude reorders links by relevance rather than the order you send them. Useful.
• Claude occasionally decides something isn't newsworthy and leaves it out. It flags this, so you can correct it.
• If you want a section written in a specific way, be explicit about it. Vague instructions get vague results.
• Never rewrite, only suggest is the most useful instruction you can add. It changes the whole dynamic.

This is how we produce the Thoughts by Humans newsletter at Taught by Humans. If you want to talk through how AI can work in your team's day-to-day - .